5 Fall Foliage Destinations

The fall foliage at these famed scenic spots stretches late into the autumn season, so there's plenty of time to catch the beautiful, natural colors at their peak! Take a hike or a drive and enjoy these five destinations from coast to coast.

2. SHENANDOAH NATIONAL PARK, Northwestern Virginia

For the first hints of foliage, look up -- way up! The leaves near the top of the 4,051-foot Blue Ridge Mountains change first, then the color moves down as the season progresses.

Take a hike!
When you walk the Rose River Loop -- a 4-mile trail deep in the woods -- you'll come across waterfall after waterfall, and a million moments that will tempt you to wade into the water to get a good shot.

Drive by!Skyline Drive, a 105-mile road that begins in the city of Front Royal, offers sweeping views of the Blue Ridge Mountains and Shenandoah Valley -- plus black bear spottings.

Chow time!
Within the park, the Pollock Dining Room at Skyland Resort(41.7 Skyline Drive) serves up seasonal local fare (Virginia rainbow trout with country spoon bread, for example), but the real draw is the view from the dining room, where you sit 3,680 feet above the foliage of the Shenandoah Valley.

Bunk here!
Don't expect frills at the Skyland Resort(rooms from $111) there are no phones or Wi-Fi in the rooms. But the views from its location at the highest point of Skyline Drive can't be beat.